No. 1 LSU will go with back-to-back left-handers tonight and Friday against South Carolina, which is No. 205 in the nation in batting average at .269.
Junior left-hander Conner Ware (4-1, 5.31 ERA, 23 strikeouts, 20 and a third innings) will start the series opener Thursday (6 p.m., SEC Network) with regular No. 1 starter, sophomore left-hander Kade Anderson (6-1, 3.66 ERA, 124 strikeouts, 76 and a third innings) starting the Friday game (6 p.m., SEC Network+).
Junior right-hander Anthony Eyanson (8-2, 2.91 ERA, 116 strikeouts, 74 and a third innings) will start the series finale on Saturday (2 p.m., SEC Network+).
The Tigers (40-12, 17-10 Southeastern Conference) have likely already clinched a top eight national seed for the NCAA playoffs, entering this final weekend of the regular season.
South Carolina (27-26, 5-22 SEC) is trying to stay out of last place under first-year coach Paul Mainieri, who was LSU’s coach from 2007-21. The Gamecocks are in 15th place in the SEC, leading last place Missouri (16-35, 3-24 SEC) by two games. Missouri, which swept Texas A&M on the road last weekend, closes the season against Mississippi State (32-10, 12-15 SEC).
LSU WILL BE EXPERIMENTING WITH PITCHERS THIS WEEKEND AND AT THE SEC TOURNAMENT
LSU coach Jay Johnson had listed his Thursday starter as TBA (to be announced) on Wednesday, but told Tiger Rag Thursday morning that it would be Ware, a transfer from Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Mississippi, who has eight SEC appearances this season and one start. Johnson let South Carolina coach Paul Mainieri that Ware would start earlier Thursday.
PAUL MAINIERI HOPES TO DO AT SOUTH CAROLINA WHAT HE DID AT LSU
Mainieri will start sophomore left-hander Ashton Crowther (2-2, 4.13 ERA) tonight.
Ware has started five games this season. He replaced Chase Shores as the No. 3 starter on Saturday, April 19, against Alabama at Alex Box Stadium in his previous SEC start. He allowed one run on three hits with a strikeout and a walk in two innings and took the 7-4 loss.
Freshman right-hander Casan Evans (3-1, 2.03 ERA, 6 saves, 53 strikeouts, 40 innings) replaced Ware as the No. 3 starter the next week and beat Tennessee. He started the next two SEC weekends against Texas A&M and Arkansas, getting a no-decision and a loss, respectively. Evans, a relief ace and LSU’s closer before adding starting to his role, had his worst out of the season against Arkansas last Sunday, allowing four runs on seven hits and three walks in three and two-thirds innings.
Ware started four non-conference games this season, beating Southern on Feb. 18 and getting no-decisions against Dallas Baptist on Feb. 26, North Dakota State on March 4 and at Nicholls State on April 8. He earned his three other wins in relief against Missouri on March 15 and 16 and against Mississippi State on March 29.
He pitched to one batter in the ninth inning of the loss to Arkansas and walked in a run with the bases loaded.
Ware is 3-1 with a 5.68 ERA through eight SEC appearances. He has allowed a .174 batting average through six and a third innings with seven strikeouts. Ware has given up four runs on four singles with six walks. He has pitched on the road in the SEC three times – at Texas, Auburn and Texas A&M.
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